Virtual environments generally involve computer-generated, three-dimensional representations of a setting. The setting, for instance, can include a large landscape which may be as large as a city, building, or some other unit of space. The representations can include virtual reality objects, which can include avatars representing computer users and other representations of real-world or fictional items.
With the continuing increase in processor power and memory density and the continuing decrease in the cost of processors and displays, virtual environment systems can include a representation of very large settings, some of which can include underground caverns, a variety of elevations at ground level, and at many elevations above ground level. Some settings can cover great distances, some that may include representations of multiple cities.
Most virtual environments include more space than can be viewed from a single viewpoint. Thus, when using existing navigational user interface tools, which are often from a single viewpoint, a large virtual environment is only as useful as a user's ability to move around and interact with objects within that view. Such user interface tools can make it difficult for users to navigate through a virtual environment, let alone locate, manage, and otherwise interact objects within the virtual environment. In some scenarios, some existing user interface tools can make it difficult for users to locate other players. Such challenges are further complicated when virtual environments involve hundreds or thousands of users interacting with millions of objects.